As you know Matthew Roszak is the C0-Founder of Bloq and, as of last week, the company has some big announcements! BloqLabs has been created and Bloq has joined the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance. To learn more about these two ventures and what it means for the future of Bloq read the article from Bitcoin Magazine below.

Two announcements from the DC Blockchain Summit came from Bloq, a pioneer in the development of enterprise-grade blockchain solutions. First, the company announced the creation of BloqLabs to boost its ongoing sponsorship while bringing support to viable open-source projects in the Bitcoin and blockchain space.

Second, Bloq revealed that it will be joining the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance (EEA), an alliance that connects Fortune 500 enterprises, startups, academics and technology vendors with Ethereum thought leaders and experts. Bloq Co-Founder and CEO Jeff Garzik has been appointed to the alliance’s Technical Steering Board.

Introducing BloqLabs

According to Garzik, BloqLabs aspires to set the tone for blockchain technology, ensuring that enterprises are embracing innovations from the community’s robust ecosystem of developers.

As such, BloqLabs will support and help to develop several key projects and platforms. The initial cohort of supported projects will include Drivechain, Qtum, VeriBlock, bitcoinj and the Android Bitcoin Wallet.

“Open source is at the core of Bloq’s DNA, as both a patron and developer,” said Andreas Schildbach, developer at Bloq and the developer of the first bitcoin wallet for Android. He also maintains the bitcoinj repository primarily used in bitcoin wallets and transaction services globally. “I’m grateful for Bloq sponsoring work in open source blockchain software.”

Paul Sztorc, an economist at Bloq and chief architect behind Drivechain, concurred. “The record is clear: open source is the way to go — it’s better, faster and more secure,” he said. “I’m thrilled to have Bloq sponsor the project; few companies are this generous.”

“Businesses have been exploring blockchain technology for years now, but without widespread adoption,” said Patrick Dai, co-founder of the Qtum Project, another early recipient of BloqLabs’ support. “BloqLabs aligns with Qtum’s goal to bridge the gap between the business and technical worlds with open-source solutions that meet the commercial needs for privacy, security and, most importantly, usability.”

“BloqLabs will serve as the platform for deeper engagement between enterprises and the open source community, just like Bell Labs and Xerox Parc did for networks and technologies we use every day,” Garzik said to Bitcoin Magazine. “We’re excited to be kicking off BloqLabs with such a diverse group of projects and established leaders in bitcoin and blockchain [technology].”

Joining Forces With the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance

Further emphasizing Bloq’s commitment to broader blockchain solutions, Bloq has joined the company of Microsoft, J.P. Morgan, BNY Mellon, BG, ING, Thomson Reuters and ConsenSys, as a member of the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance. Garzik has also accepted a position on the Technical Steering Board of the alliance.

“Initiatives like the EEA and BloqLabs will be critical to connecting enterprises with open source blockchain innovation,” said Garzik. “We’re thrilled to contribute our time, energy and insights to this project, and I’m honored to be appointed to the Technical Steering Board.”

“Jeff [Garzik] is a legend of the open source community and has been one of the most prominent advocates for strong technical governance of public blockchains,” said Jeremy Millar, chief of staff of ConsenSys and board member of the EEA. “Combined with his experiences from the Linux Foundation, Red Hat and Bitcoin Core, Jeff is a tremendous addition to our technical leadership.”

Led by a team of world-class blockchain developers, entrepreneurs and investors, the company utilizes open-source technology, providing key linkages for secure interoperability with prevailing business systems. Its technology targets critical business issues surrounding security, provenance, authentication and reconciliation.

Over the past five months, Bloq has been in a major expansion mode, having acquired blockchain analytics pioneer Skry as well as co-launching Vulcan Digital Asset Services. The latter is a platform that gives digital assets utility for everyday banking, commerce and assets services, through PwC Australia.

Did you know that blockchain technology is being used in food safety measures across the globe? A platform was developed after a horse meat scandal and its goal is to transmit information to food suppliers quicker and more accurately to boost consumer confidence in products. Learn more about this in the article from Bitcoin Magazine below.

Burgers on the Blockchain: How Tech Can Keep Food Safe

The European horsemeat scandal in 2013 sent shockwaves throughout the food industry, putting into question what we are eating and where that food came from. Now, using blockchain technology companies are tackling this issue and attempting to improve consumer confidence in the food industry to ensure authenticity in food traceability.

Exposed in mid-January 2013, Irish food inspectors announced that they had found horsemeat in frozen beef burgers made by companies in the Irish Republic and the U.K. after tests discovered horse DNA within them. It was revealed that these had been sold by several U.K. supermarket chains such as Tesco, Iceland, Aldi and Lidl, growing to include European stores including Findus and Nestle.

Unsurprisingly, the integrity of the food industry has taken a hit. Before the scandal broke, nine in ten people felt confident when purchasing food at the supermarket. Now, though, the number has dropped to seven in ten. A report from the Guardian shows that 38 percent of supermarket foods were found to be mislabeled or fraudulent, which can have long-lasting effects on the retailer’s reputation.

Furthermore, research from the World Health Organization found that 1 in 10 people in the world suffer from foodborne illnesses, 420,000 of whom die each year, many of them young children.

With offices in Edinburgh, Belfast and San Francisco, arc-net was formed following the 2013 horsemeat scandal and the subsequent Elliot government report in 2014.The platform is designed to deliver confidence in a global supply chain where producers have complete control of their brand and business. Through the establishment of stronger relationships with those in the supply chain, organizations can receive the correct information they need, ensuring that food products are 100 percent authentic and traceable.

According to research, following the horsemeat scandal, consumer trust in the food industry dropped by a quarter. Additionally, 30 percent of shoppers are now buying less processed meat, and a further 24 percent are purchasing fewer ready meals with meat in them or are opting for vegetarian dishes instead.

Speaking to Bitcoin Magazine, Sean Crossey, associate digital marketing analyst at arc-net, said that the scandal and the findings of the report brought into focus the gaps in knowledge relating to the food supply.

“As the issue of counterfeit products and fraudulent activity became more and more prevalent in our marketplace, there was a real need to address the gap in information relating to supply chain activity and brand authenticity,” he said.

A study by PwC and Safe and Secure Approaches in Field Environments (SSAFE) found last January that each year, food fraud is estimated to be a $40 billion problem worldwide. In the U.K., fraud costs the food and drink industry up to £11 billion per year ($13.6 billion), according to research by PFK Littlejohn. However, by tackling fraud, the food and drink industry could boost profits by £4.48 billion ($5.45 billion).

Furthermore, a campaign from Oceana has found that food fraud is cheating Americans out of up to $25 billion a year. As such, with the food supply chain expanding its global reach, it is becoming increasingly vulnerable to fraud.

How It Works

Through its immutable data history, the blockchain delivers openness and transparency, from creation through to consumption, for the consumer.

In the case of arc-net, analysis of a DNA sample from an animal can provide key markers, such as country of origin. A digital copy of that DNA is attached to every item or product an organization creates, bringing traceability to the item level, rather than to an entire batch, thereby allowing businesses to track each item throughout every stage of the supply chain.

That digital marker can then be cross-checked with the blockchain record to ensure the product’s authenticity throughout its lifecycle. The process allows producers to create a “chain of custody.”

Once the food lands on a retailer’s shelf, consumers can scan a QR code on the food package with their mobile phones to receive food safety information about the product, including details as to what is in the package and its origination.

“This [process] helps organizations prevent fraud while delivering total traceability, cutting the costs of product recalls and reducing process inefficiencies,” said Crossey. “It ensures that retailers can guarantee the authenticity of the food that reaches their shelves.”

Matthew Roszak’s company, Bloq, recently teamed up with Swiss Re to give a platform to Mr. Roszak’s presentation on Blockchain currency and how money is now technological. Check out a preview of the presentation below and then follow the link to view the rest online.

Mr. Roszak was recently featured on the Commodity Markets Council website. Read the feature below to learn more about him and his work.

MATTHEW ROSZAK

Matthew RoszakCo-Founder & Chairman, Bloq

Matthew Roszak is co-founder and chairman of Bloq, a blockchain enterprise software company. Mr. Roszak is also founding partner of Tally Capital, a private investment firm focused on blockchain-enabled technology with a portfolio of over 20 investments, including BitFury, Blockstream and Factom.

Mr. Roszak is a blockchain investor, entrepreneur and advocate. He has spent over 20 years in private equity and venture capital with Advent International, Keystone Capital Partners, Platinum Venture Partners and SilkRoad Equity, and has invested over $1 billion of capital (from start-up to IPO) in a broad range of industries. Mr. Roszak is a director and beneficial owner of Eboost, MissionMode, Neu Entity, Onramp, SolidSpace and TrueLook.

Mr. Roszak serves as chairman of the Chamber of Digital Commerce, the world’s largest trade association representing the blockchain industry. In addition, Mr. Roszak serves on the board of BitGive, a non-profit foundation targeting public health and the environment. Mr. Roszak is also the founder of the Chicago Bitcoin Center, and was a producer of the documentary, The Rise and Rise of Bitcoin.

Mr. Roszak is a sought after thought leader on blockchain technology, and has testified as an expert before US Congress and spoken at The Brookings Institution. Mr. Roszak has been featured on CNBC and quoted in The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg and Financial Times. In addition, Mr. Roszak has presented at FinTech conferences worldwide, including Money20/20, CES and American Banker.

The Dow hit an average over 20,000 this week and, for some, it is a huge milestone while, for others, it is insignificant. As you all know, the stock market changes and fluctuates all the time. Since November, those changes have been especially monitored and noticed because of the election and inauguration of a new President. This steady growth of Dow Jones is a good sign of economic stability for the time being. Read more about this milestone in the article from CNBC below.

Dow 20,000: Its insignificance may rival its importance

Jeff Brown, Special to CNBC.com

Wednesday, 25 Jan 2017 | 9:45 AM ET

The Dow Jones industrial average has finally hit 20,000, and if it closes above that mark on Wednesday, it will surely be a market milestone. But if the long wait for Dow 20,000 already tired you out, don’t feel bad.

Dow 20,000 is not quite like running a four-minute mile or breaking the sound barrier. It’s little more than an imaginary line.

As a practical matter, Dow 20,001 will make investors richer than Dow 20,000, but surely won’t get as much attention. Big round numbers are easier to remember and visualize than the ones marking records leading up to them, just as the 20-foot pole vault seems easier to imagine than 19 feet, 11½ inches.

“Hitting 20,000 is significant only in terms of its emotional and psychological impact on us,” said Jeremy Torgerson, CEO of NVest Advisors in Brownsville, Texas. “We humans love round numbers.

“Remember New Year’s Day 2000, as a recent example,” he added. “That new year was somehow more meaningful than January 2, 2001, or January 1, 1999.”

The Dow’s climb up over time can’t make any claim to being a natural law of market evolution. It’s purely a human invention,created by The Wall Street Journal in 1896, and its makeup changes from time to time based on choices by editors at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

“The fact that people even monitor the Dow is an artifact of history,” said Robert Johnson, president of the American College of Financial Services in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.

Joshua Lott | Getty Images – Trader yawning during the market day

It is the only price-weighted market index, a methodology that more heavily emphasizes moves by higher priced stocks than their lower priced counterparts — without sound logic, in Johnson’s opinion.

“People still refer to how many points the Dow is up or down, even though a 100-point move is roughly half a percent today and it was approximately 5 percent at the time of the 1987 crash,” Johnson said.

“The fact that people even monitor the Dow is an artifact of history.”-Robert Johnson, president of the American College of Financial Services

If the Dow were a typical average, prices of the 30 stocks would be added up and divided by 30. But instead the calculation uses a much smaller divisor — currently 0.14602128057775. The divisor has been adjusted over the decades to account for stock splits, spin-offs, mergers and stock dividends, to assure that numbers from before and after yield apples-to-apples comparisons.

What really matters to investors is percentage gains, not the number of points the Dow adds over time. So going from 1,000 to 2,000 doubled investors’ money, as did 5,000 to 10,000 and 10,000 to 20,000.

Up and down Dows

Investors may also be interested in how the Dow behaves after passing a big milestone. Unfortunately, there’s no pattern dependable enough to bet on.

“Back in 1999, we hit 10,000 and the market continued to run another 1,000 points, but in January 2000, the market went from 11,900 down to 9,600,” recalled Michael Darvish, senior financial advisor with Regal Securities in New York. “There is no specific pattern.

“It depends on the economic conditions,” he added. “We are on a Trump high right now. Last January, we had a sell-off, and I would not be surprised if we get another one this year as investors want to take some money off the table.”

Dow doublings

How long do Dow doublings take?

Fifteen years to go from 1,000 to 2,000 (1972–1987)

Four years from 5,000 to 10,000 (1995–1999)

About 17 years from 10,000 to 20,000 (1999–???)

An investor who wanted to bet on gains in the Dow could buy the 30 stocks, buy a fund that holds large-capitalization stocks including those in the Dow or make a pure play with SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA), an exchange-traded fund that owns the 30 Dow stocks.

But unless you own DIA, chances are your own results are different from the Dow’s. The other big-name stock index ETF, the Standard & Poor’s 500 (SPY), contains 500 stocks versus the Dow’s 30, but tends to move about the same as the Dow over time, since it also is composed of large-cap issues. But if you own foreign stocks, or small-company stocks, or shares in specific sectors, the Dow 20,000 may not matter much to you.

“What matters is not where the Dow is, or how round that number is, but how one’s own portfolio of investments is doing,” said Michal Strahilevitz, behavioral economist at Duke University’s Center for Advanced Hindsight. “For the wisest of investors, that will include a diverse range of index funds and such and not just a fund that tracks the Dow.”

A real milestone: Debt $20 trillion

Investors may be cheered by a milestone.

“It is significant because, from a momentum perspective, once people see Dow 20,000 then they can be convinced that Dow 25,000 is possible,” said Ted Jenkin, CEO of Oxygen Financial in Alpharetta, Georgia.

But they should not use the Dow milestone as an excuse to alter their long-term plan. “That is the best advice for anyone, no matter what the Dow has done, is doing or will do,” Strahilevitz said. “Timing the market based on anything is a fool’s strategy.

“It fails at least as often as it works.”

Stocks go down as well as up, of course, and the march to a new record is often interrupted by big downturns, such as the dotcom selloff and financial crisis crash that came between Dow 10,000 and 20,000. Smaller sell-offs come when investors decide to nail down profits after a big run and move to cash or some other holding. Deeper declines are often triggered by worries about corporate earnings or the health of the economy.

Erik Davidson, chief investment officer for Wells Fargo Private Bank, worries that the U.S. is quickly approaching another milestone that could dampen market performance: $20 trillion in government debt. He calculates that, while the Dow has produced a total return, including reinvested dividends, of 153 percent since the start of the 21st century, the debt has gone up 253 percent.

“While we will likely be seeing many Dow 20,000 hats, I sincerely doubt that we will see a single Debt $20 Trillion hat,” Davidson said. “That says a lot about where the market is focusing these days.”

— By Jeff Brown, special to CNBC.com

(Update: This story has been updated to reflect the Dow opening above 20,000 on Wednesday, Jan. 25.)

It’s not too late to consider a new year’s resolution, and being smarter with your money is a great one. Saving money and planning out a financial forecast are habits most people adapt easily. However, to truly be prosperous and successful you need to adapt other habits that might not come as easily. Those habits are discussed in the article from Entrepreneur Magazine below. Make note of them and see how great your finances look by the end of 2017.

10 Money Habits That Will Help You Get Serious About Prosperity

Take your financial life to the next level through actions like seeking new income sources, making debts your priority and separating friendship from business.

The power of habit can be quite interesting. Rather than create 2017 resolutions that may not stick, a good alternative is to develop positive habits this year. Especially when the category is financial life.

So, make it your goal to form new habits that will take your financial life to the next level.

From learning a new skill every day to hitting the gym regularly, habit takes away the one singular thing that prevents us from getting things done — resistance. With good habits, we no longer resist. We just do it.

You can quickly attain financial freedom by positively channeling the power of habit toward how you treat money. But, first, let’s look at the steps to developing new habits.

Author James Clear breaks down habit formation into three steps (the three R’s): reminder (what triggers the behavior); routine (the habit itself) and reward (what you get from this behavior). In order for a habit to stick, it must follow the three R’s rule. By practicing some of the following habits, your reward will be a more financially rewarding lifestyle.

1. Be clear about your financial goals.

One habit you need to develop is clarity toward your goals. Your goals can shape your attitude toward whatever you do and put you in the right perspective about your financial life. Lack of clarity is equivalent to having no goals at all.

“Clarity about your money goals is the first step towards getting your finances right,” Yasir Khan, founder and chief editor at WealthKept.com, told me. “Getting your finances right — being able to prioritize what you do with your money — can only be achieved by clearing the unnecessary obligations out of the way.”

Developing a habit of being clear about your financial goals will also create a sense of focus, which is the psychological effect of setting goals. Let’s assume your aim is to start your own business this year. You’ll outline how much funding is required to do that, and how much you want to raise yourself.

2. Stop associating guilt with money.

One habit which keeps a person from growing financially is how he or she feels about money. A lot of people feel guilty, which is why they often find it difficult to discuss the financial terms of a business relationship before starting one.

Develop a positive attitude toward money this year by overcoming any guilt you feel about money.

3. Seek more income sources.

The best way to improve your financial life this year is to use your free time to earn an extra income. Start by looking at areas where you can fill a need and earn extra money in the process.

And make converting your spare time into income opportunities a habit. You could freelance for businesses or help people with things they can’t do themselves. Khan said he was able to start two small businesses apart from his main job when he noticed he could use his free time to help others. Now that his side businesses are growing, he hires people to help him run the business.

4. Make clearing your debts a priority.

One of the biggest hindrances to financial growth is debt. The problem is that debt keeps compounding, making it your most expensive liability. Start paying off your debt with each paycheck you earn. By forming this habit, you could become debt-free by the end of 2017.

5. Save to secure your future.

Make saving a habit in 2017. The more you save, the more you’ll have when you retire. JPMorgan Chase puts together an annual guide to retirement that provides investment and savings strategies for all stages of life.

6. Separate friendship from business.

Underscore the purpose of your relationship with others, and make it a habit to always separate money from friendship and friendship from business.

A lot of relationships have gone to ruin because of money. In 2017, be careful when forming business relationships. Make sure you know enough about someone before entering into such a relationship. Use background check tools like Check Them or Check People before a first meeting. Entering into a relationship with the wrong person could be costly or devastating to your financial life.

7. See money as a means, not an end.

Many people get the notion of money very wrong. Because we see money as the end goal, it affects our orientation about it. See money as what it is and what it’s meant to be — a tool, a means to an end. What the end is for every one of us may be different. For most, it might be happiness, while for others it’s simply a comfortable lifestyle.

8. Seek advice from money experts.

Develop a habit of seeking advice before making any major financial decision. This will help you avoid making any decision you’ll end up regretting. When you make a habit of seeking financial advice, you’ll be less likely to take financial risks that could hurt your lifestyle.

9. Decide against impulse buying.

Make it a habit to spend only on things you need. Cut back on impulse buying by weighing your options before making any purchase. When you buy on impulse, you only gain a temporary sense of satisfaction. Once this instant gratification has worn off, what you’re left with is a shrunken purse and a tinge of regret, or buyer’s remorse.

10. Live below your means.

Many wealthy individuals mastered the habit of living below their means, even before they became hugely successful. A lot of wealthy individuals prefer to live a frugal lifestyle.

Going frugal can help you create a financial lifestyle that’s easily manageable. It can leave you with enough money and time to invest into your business and relationship. And that’s what good money habits are all about.

In the new year major retailer, Walmart, will test use of blockchain technology. Specifically blockchain distributed ledgers will be used, and it will be a new advancement for blockchain in a new market. Learn more about the plans and hopes for the future in the article below.

Walmart Testing Blockchain Technology for Supply Chain Management

U.S. retail giant, Walmart, is about to start a major test of blockchain technology for supply chain management, The Wall Street Journal reports. A pilot project, which will start in the first quarter of 2017 and run for four months, plans to leverage distributed ledger technology to track and trace pork in China and produce in the U.S. — two high-volume product categories with large markets.

This will be one of the first major tests of blockchain distributed ledgers outside the financial services industry. According to the WSJ, blockchain technology can help in overcoming delays and errors, resulting in more streamlined and efficient supply chain management. In fact, the supply chain management sector is a prime target for advanced applications of blockchain technology. Among companies in consumer goods and manufacturing, 42 percent plan to spend at least $5 million on blockchain technology in the next year, according to a Deloitte survey.

According to Frank Yiannas, Vice President of Food Safety at Walmart and leader of the blockchain effort, the pilot project will give Walmart a sense of how blockchain technology works and how well it scales. The main challenge, Yiannas explained, is setting up technology for farmers, field workers and others to collect data and insert it onto a blockchain. Innovative data entry tools running on ubiquitous smartphones, with backends in the cloud, are expected to allow field workers to input relevant data to a blockchain ledger that tracks all data, making it accessible “in minutes, rather than days,” Yiannas said, thereby improving Walmart’s supply chain efficiency, identifying bottlenecks and reducing food waste.

The project — a collaboration between Walmart, IBM and Tsinghua University in Beijing — was first unveiled in October, when the project partners claimed they were creating a new model for food traceability, supply chain transparency and auditability. “By harnessing the power of blockchain technology designed to generate transparency and efficiency in supply chain record keeping, this work aims to help enhance the safety of food on the tables of Chinese consumers,” noted an IBM press release. In fact, the pilot project was initially planned to track and trace Chinese pork; U.S. produce was added later.

The technical platform that Walmart will use is based on IBM’s blockchain technology developed for the Linux Foundation, Hyperledger fabric. An open source blockchain technology intended as a foundation for developing blockchain applications, the platform has modular architecture that allows for plug-and-play components, such as smart contract, consensus and membership services. In September, IBM unveiled a collaboration with Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (BTMU), which leverages the same technology to automate and streamline business transactions.

“As advocates of promoting greater transparency in the food system for our customers, we look forward to working with IBM and Tsinghua University to explore how this technology might be used as a more effective food traceability solution,” said Yiannas.

“Advanced technology has reached into so many aspects of modern life but it has lagged in food traceability, and in particular in creating more secure food supply chains. Our collaboration with Walmart and Tsinghua University is a step of global significance to change that,” added Bridget van Kralingen, Senior Vice President, Industry Platforms, IBM. “Food touches all of us, everywhere, so we are experimenting in China with Walmart and Tsinghua, given the size and scale of food consumption in this country.”

The Walmart pilot project will use transaction security and authentication technology developed by Tsinghua University, “China’s rapid economic growth has led to massive opportunities for innovation, but it has also presented quality of life challenges, including helping to assure that food sold in the country is safe to eat,” said Tsinghua professor Chai Yueting from the National Engineering Laboratory for E-Commerce Technologies.

Chai added that Tsinghua University is also committed to in-depth research of food safety — one of the most important areas that the world is focusing on. “We believe the work with IBM and Walmart can serve as a global model for others to follow and replicate,” he said.

As 2016 comes to an end and a new year begins, you will notice market and economic changes take place as they do with any new year. Currently Bitcoin prices are on the rise. If you want to protect your share use the tips in the article below. You can never be too secure.

How Not to Lose Your Bitcoin in 2017

Are you surprised by how much your bitcoin is worth? Don’t let that surprise turn to dismay by losing it. Now is the perfect time to take a few basic precautions to keep your cryptocurrency secure.

Here are 8 do-it-yourself tips to help you improve your security:

1. Backup today

You can never say it enough: back up your wallet. If you haven’t yet backed up your wallet, do it now.

Most hardware and software wallets use an industry standard backup protocol called BIP 39 that allows your wallet backup to be 12, 18, or 24 English words.

It’s important to write the words down, on paper, in order, and securely store the backup somewhere safe from people, water and fire. If you don’t back up your wallet, you could well lose your bitcoin. Forever.

2. Check on your backups

If you have backed up your wallet, check on the backup locations.

The new year is a perfect time to check on your important papers, including your wallet backups. Can you still access them? Can you still read the words? Are they secure from fire, water and theft? If you’ve given the backups to someone else (lawyer, accountant), ask them to check their storage.

Do they still have them? Verify the location and security of your backups.

3. Set a calendar reminder

While we all know we should be checking our backups, wallets and estate plans regularly, it’s hard to remember to do it.

Add a reminder to your calendar now, to check all these things again in three, six or at most 12 months.

4. Move money off your smartphone

With the increase in the bitcoin price, you might be shocked at how much money you’ve been carrying around on your smartphone.

Now is a great time to move your coins onto a hardware wallet or into cold storage. Hardware wallets are very easy to use, with user-friendly software components, and are considered one of the safest ways to store bitcoin.

While it’s great to carry petty cash or spending money on your phone, never carry more bitcoin on your smartphone than you would carry as cash in your wallet.

5. Move your money off exchanges

If you have coins sitting on an exchange, move them out today to a wallet you control.

Most of the popular exchanges pool coins and while you have a “balance” showing on your account, you do not actually control the keys. If the exchange gets hacked you could lose your money. Remember that you only control the bitcoin if you control the keys: “not your keys, not your bitcoin”.

6. Upgrade to two-factor authentication

Add two-factor authentication to your bitcoin-related accounts and to all other important online accounts. The best two-factor solution is a hardware token and you can buy one for just $20–$30.

Otherwise use a smartphone authentication app, such as Authy or Google Authenticator. SMS is not a very good two-factor solution, though it is still better than none at all.

7. Use a password manager

Humans are great at identifying patterns and that makes us terrible at randomness. Password best practices – choose a different random password for each site, never write them down – pose management problems.

For most people, the only way to accomplish this is to use a password manager – one which generates and stores your passwords securely on multiple devices. Popular managers include 1Password, LastPass, and the open source KeePass.

Many offer free basic services, with premium services costing less than $80 per year. They’re easy to use and in just a couple of weeks you’ll never want to be without one again.

8. Plan for your family

If something happened to you tomorrow would your family be able to access your bitcoin? While this tip takes time to implement, it’s worth it.

It shouldn’t take you more than an hour to make a plan and decide who you want to get what, write down instructions and tell your family about your plan.

Be sure to consult an attorney, to make sure your plan is consistent with local law and can’t be challenged in a court. If you have a will, trust, or other estate plan, let your attorney know that you have new assets that need to be included in your plan.

Getting your first bitcoin is becoming easier and easier, but keeping it safe from hackers, insolvent exchanges, and loss isn’t as easy.

These 8 tips will help you bring in the new year with a renewed sense of confidence that you can safeguard the bitcoin that you have, especially now that it’s worth a lot more.

Have an opinion on blockchain in 2016? A prediction for 2017? Email editors@coindesk.com to learn how you can contribute to our series.

The DAO was a way people could fund projects by being stakeholders. Unfortunately it ended because of contract issues. However, now, a new DAO has been created called Charity DAO which will run completely different than The DAO of the past. Read more about this development in the article below.

The Developers Behind The DAO Are Launching a New DAO

The team that created the now-infamous ethereum-based funding vehicle known as The DAO have regrouped, and in a blog post published today, Slock.it CTO Christoph Jentzsch announced a new open-source initiative called Charity DAO.

The original DAO raised as much as $150m worth of ether by selling tokens that would be used by stakeholders to vote on projects to fund. Yet a then-unforeseen flaw in the DAO’s smart contract was exploited, resulting in a $60m loss and the collapse of the project.

Charity DAO, by contrast, is aimed at making charitable functions more transparent, and if everything works as planned, increasing the willingness of donors to give.

Jentzsch told CoinDesk:

“I want to see a truly decentralized autonomous organization being built on top of ethereum, and a charity DAO is a great application for many reasons.”

Unlike the for-profit DAO, which was intended to pay dividends to investors based on the success of its investments, this effort is intended as a nonprofit. But to prevent even the potential of such high-stakes losses like with The DAO, Jentzsch says this time around he’ll temporarily cap the amount raised and a so-called “security hatch” will be written into the code.

“But long term, I hope this can be removed to be truly decentralized and autonomous,” he told CoinDesk.

Conducted in partnership with a group identified as “Giveth” in the blog, Charity DAO will let donors control their funds and vote on which projects they want to fund.

While this is not formally a product of Slock.it, Jentzsch says some of the same people who contributed are still involved. Jentzsch is leading the project, but wants to open it up to outside contributors.

The model itself sounds remarkably similar to The DAO, except the recipients of the funds will ostensibly also be nonprofits.

“We want to use the knowledge and the experience learned from this experience to create a Charity DAO,” wrote Jentzsch in the post. “The Charity DAO will have a very narrow focus.”

A second chance?

In the aftermath of the collapse of The DAO, when an unknown perpetrator took advantage by moving $60m worth of funds into an account he or she controlled, the ethereum community suffered immensely.

Charity DAO, as a result, will likely face an intense amount of scrutiny.

In pitching the project in the blog post, Jentzsch argues that “trust in charities is at an all time low” and “charities have a public image problem,” both of which might be hard to swallow for investors who were temporarily burned in the fall-out surrounding the DAO collapse.

But in spite of a call from one member of cryptocurrency academia to ostracize the Slock.it team from the community, one cannot help but remember the old startup-maxim: fail fast and fail often.

In the end, all DAO investors were given a chance to receive a refund following a controversial hard fork that resulted in a schism in the community and the formation of ethereum classic.

Jentzsch said his involvement with The DAO was “a humbling experience” that highlighted previously unknown factors. He added that it is, perhaps, exactly this experience that helped improve the code used in this current incarnation.

He told CoinDesk:

“I think there is no other smart contract which got more reviews then theDAO contract, and we can use all of this knowledge and feedback to build a better one.”

MasterCard is one of the first corporations that comes to mind when you think of credit cards. But the company does so much more beyond providing you with credit. Their latest venture? Blockchain APIs. Although this isn’t the first credit company to progress in the blockchain world, it is extremely forward thinking with this advancement. Read more about this in the article below.

Credit Card Giant MasterCard Releases ‘Experimental’ Blockchain APIs

But while Visa is going it alone in releasing a B2B blockchain, MasterCard it seems is quietly developing a set of new blockchain APIs with more collaborative goals.

The credit card giant’s development site now features three APIs connected to its internal blockchain work, including offerings focused on smart contracts and payment settlement. The APIs were released by MasterCard Labs, its innovation outfit.

MasterCard blockchain lead Justin Pinkham said the company released its API platform last month in a bid to stoke interest among banks and merchant developers.

He told CoinDesk:

“This is part of our initiative to publish experimental APIs from Mastercard Labs and give developers the chance to work on emerging technologies that haven’t yet been commercialized by us.”

Pinkham went on to state that the company is continuing to pursue uses of the technology while at the same time advocating for collaborations that might apply to MasterCard’s businesses.

“We believe that there is a role of blockchain in the future of commerce. This future needs to be developed in partnership with banks, merchants and industry participants,” he continued.

The news is perhaps the most significant to date for MasterCard, which has criticized bitcoin (the longest-running public blockchain) in the past but expressed cautious enthusiasm about its underlying technology.

More in store

But with the launch of the APIs, MasterCard is beginning to push some of the work done by its internal teams out the door.

It won’t be the last, according to Pinkham, who said that the company is creating the foundation for blockchain tech that could focus on use cases including inter-bank payments and trade finance.

Applications focused on digital identity and the exchange of know-your-customer information are also being explored, according to Pinkham.

The work coincides with collaborative efforts between MasterCard and startups through its Start Path Global program, as well as the more than 30 blockchain-related patents Pinkham said the company has submitted to date.